Hēi àn
by Crystalline Ice
Summary: Darkness is where a lot of things began, and where more things will begin. For me, darkness was an unknown, unappreciated blessing... a blessing that began my very life.
1. Chapter 1

**Hēi àn  
Beginning in Darkness**

* * *

Some stories start out gracefully, some with, "Once upon a time, long, long ago", some start with a dramatic battle scene, or some with a boring, average day. Well... mine started out with darkness.

Darkness was all I saw. Darkness was all I could even bring myself to acknowledge. My eyes felt like they were glued shut, my head throbbed, and my spine ached from the freezing cold that I inexplicably felt all around my body. After what felt like hours of lying there in that wretched darkness, the faint sound of a female voice was enough to force me all the way into consciousness.

I opened my eyes slowly, wincing at the bright light I was faced with, undoubtedly shining from the crystal-clear, blue sky. I looked around and my gaze rested upon an elderly lady with olive skin, who was hunched over me worriedly.

"Good, child. You are awake," she said in her thin, yet widsom-filled voice. When I stared at her in confusion, she offered me a tiny, thin lipped smile. "Not having to drag you to my home will make it easier on this old woman's bones."

I understood her, but only blinked in response. After I realized that my fingers were going numb due to the snow that they were resting in, I slowly sat up and place my hands in my lap. I looked down at my hands, noting that they were a very pale shade of white, and I did not think that it was because of the fact that they were cold.

"Are you going to speak to me, child? What's your name?" the elderly woman asked in a concerned tone. I looked up at her, about to state my name. It was then that I realized that I did not know my name.

"I... I don't think I remember," I stated, slightly surprised at my own voice. It sounded stronger than I had expected it to be, for some reason.

"Oh, dear... Well, I supposed it can't be helped. For now, let's get you out of the snow and back to my home. Maybe a little warmth will stir your head back into remembering."

The elderly woman helped me stand, which I discovered to be incredibly painful. I pushed through the pain as she helped me along the faint path leading to her village. She talked to me a little bit, but unfortunately the blood was rushing in my ears from my sudden standing. When we reached the village, she lead me into her little hut-like abode, and helped me sit close to the fire. I sighed, relishing in the warmth.

"Well, child, my name is Khana."

I smiled in acknowledgement. I felt my eyes widen as I remembered something.

"Wait... I think... I think I'm starting to remember my name," I said quietly, and Khana smiled, encouraging me to think. "Mei... No... May... Ugh, it's May-something!" I said in frustration. After a few moments, I tried again. "May-do? No, that's just stupid... Wait, it's May-KO! My name is Mako!"

Khana smiled. "Ah, it's a pretty name. Your parents must have good taste... Whoever they are."

I smiled cheerfully, starting to feel a little more familiar with myself. Just to make sure, I wanted to look and see if I was correct. "Thank you, Khana... Do you happen to have a mirror?" I asked quietly.

Khana nodded and handed me a hand-mirror to look at my face with. I smiled at my reflection, enchanted as the mirror mimicked me. I saw my pale face with high cheek bones, my blonde hair, and my unusually pale-red eyes. I handed Khana back the mirror, and she set it somewhere amongst her. I was aware of her studying my face, and I could feel my cheeks warming up a little bit.

"You have unusual eyes, my dear Mako. Do you know your origin at all?"

"No, I'm sorry. I'm just glad I remembered my name..."

"Don't worry about it, my dear."

There was a sudden commotion outside, and Khana waved at me to follow her. "My grandchildren are probably back from hunting. I just hope Sokka has caught something," she explained as I got up to follow her. She lead the way to the edge of the village, and we were both shocked by the sight. There was a giant beast standing there, with two teens and a young boy. The two teens took notice of us, and rushed right over.

"Gran-gran, we found a boy in-... Who's that?" the young lady asked, staring at me. The young man took a glance at me and threw up his arms.

"Great, another stranger! Now she and the one we found can live happily ever after together, invading the private lives of simple tribefolk!" the boy said in exhasperation. I tilted my head at him, staring deeply into his blue eyes with my own red ones. "Okay, now that's just freaky. And I thought the kid was a weirdo.. Gah!" The boy then stomped away. I turned and treated the girl the same way. She faltered, and her left eye twitched a little bit.

Khana nudged me gently, and I looked down at her.

"I found this nice lady in the snow. Her name is Mako. Now, don't mind her if she's a bit strange, she's lost her memory a bit," Khana said kindly, motioning to the girl before me. "Mako, this is Katara. I think you two would get along."

Katara stared at me, then smiled warmly. I returned the gesture, and Katara put a hand on my shoulder. "Why don't you go over there while I talk to my grandmother? I'll talk to you in a moment," she said, pointing to the beast and the young boy. Before I could protest, she gently pushed me over in front of the kid, who immediately grinned up at me.

"Hi, I'm Aang! Who're you?!" he said, rather loudly. I stared at him with my pale-red eyes in slight shock.

"Mako," I said simply.

"Great name! Hey, your eyes are unusual. Why are they red? Are you a bender? How old are you? Do you live here? Aren't you cold in short-sleeves?"

The questions came quickly and overwhelmed me just as so.

"I... Um, well... I don't really remember a whole lot," I muttered. "Not sure if I'm a bender... I'm pretty sure that I'm 17... Yes, it's a little cold... And I don't believe I live here."

"Cool! Wait, you aren't sure if you're a bender? Is that possible? Have you ever tried?" Aang continued, just as excitedly as before. I felt my eyes twitch a little bit. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

**Author: **This story will be mostly canon, but some parts will be a little deviant and some others vague. Either way, I hope that it will be enjoyable to you! Hēi àn, by the way, is traditional Chinese for "Darkness". I used this title because I wanted it to be short, authentic to the series, and yet still capture the beginning mood of the entire fiction. On a random note, Mako's name is indeed pronounced MAY-KO. I felt that MAH-KO would be too masculine. Anyways, I promise the rest of any notes I may have for you won't be this long! Enjoy, and if you do, please review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Hēi àn  
The Last Airbender**

* * *

The rest of the night was actually rather uneventful, other than me learning that Aang was an airbender. Khana had suggested that I sleep with Katara for the night. So, here I was, awkwardly sitting with Katara.

"I'm sorry about this," I mumbled, and she looked up at me from her fingers, which were gracefully sliding along the smooth fur that we were sitting on.

"About what?"

"Well, you know. Suddenly appearing, having to sleep in the same room as you. It must be strange, right?" I explained, sighing and leaning back on my elbows to look at the ceiling boredly. Katara seemed to be thinking my words over a little bit.

"Well, the way we found Aang was just as strange, if not more so. I actually think it's kind of exciting. I don't exactly have any girls my age around. They're all young or elderly, really." I smiled fondly when I noticed her looking me up and down.

"So, you really don't remember where you came from?"

"No," I replied, shaking my head. "All I really have going for me right now is a basic knowledge of our world and of myself."

Katara hummed thoughtfully. "Well, as far as I know those are Earth Kingdom colors you're wearing. Maybe you're from the Earth Kingdom."

I looked down at myself. "True..."

"Can you earthbend?" Katara gushed, looking at me with big eyes.

"I don't honestly remember. I don't feel anything stirring around like I'm missing something... I might just be a nonbender," I replied calmly.

Katara looked somewhat disappointed at my statement.

"Oh well. Hey, let's get some sleep, yeah?"

I nodded and rolled over onto my side, facing away from her. The room went dark as Katara blew out the candle, and soon so did my mind as I fell into sleep.

* * *

I woke when Katara stirred early in the morning. I sat up, knowing instinctively that my hair was a mess. Or that might have just been because of Katara giggling at me. I yawned in indifference, and stood up with a stretch. Katara offered to help me comb my hair, and I blushed a little bit.

"You'd do that? Thanks..." I said slowly, and Katara just smiled.

I closed my eyes as she slowly worked her way through my hair, and relished the tingles it gave me.

"Your hair is beautiful, I've never seen hair this shade of blonde before," she complimented, and I grunted in embarrassment.

"Thanks..."

After a few minutes, my hair was once again neat and, to return the favor, I helped comb hers. Katara's hair was thick and dark, but smooth and soft once combed. She braided her hair and put her hair loops in place by herself, and I wandered out of the room, gazing out upon the village.

I shivered when I realized that it was cold. Noting all the snow, I also realized that to not realize this sooner was stupid of me. I frowned at my position, and was wondering what I should do when Khana shuffled over to me and held out a mess of fabric.

"Here. I dug up an extra parka for you, Mako," I smiled warmly at the elderly woman and thanked her heartily, shoving my arms and torso into the parka. I sighed at the warmth, and Khana admired how the parka looked on me. "Earth is your color, but you're good in blue, too."

I laughed at her fashion statement and pulled the hood of the parka up. I thought it clashed a tiny bit with my brown pants and what could be seen of my light-green dress, but I shrugged and wandered away. I saw that Katara had brought Aang out into the village, and then left him to play with the children when Khana pulled her away for her chores. I smiled and joined him, which he looked gleeful about.

After a while, I shuffled elsewhere and decided to help Khana with some sewing. It seemed that I was at least a great sewer, and shared a grin with Khana when we both discover this. Hours passed when I realised the commotion outside. Khana and I then shared a small frown as we left the room to watch as Aang left. A couple children were sniffling, one remarking about how mean Sokka was. I decided it would be best not to interfer once I saw Sokka's angry face.

* * *

It was not even ten minutes later when I saw that snow had began to fall, and noticed that some of it was black. I let a few flakes fall onto my palm, not surprised when they melted and left behind some powdery soot. For some reason, I knew what this meant.

"Fire Nation," I heard someone whisper, and realised this to be true when a large metal ship pulled up to the edge of the village, breaking the ice along the way.

Katara an I shared a glance, and she put me in charge of keeping the children safe in one room. I was shocked. I didn't think that an almost-stranger would trust me that much. I kept watch over the children anyways. Not too long had passed before I heard Aang's familiar voice. I listened to the conversation between him and the young man I'd been hearing that had been scaring the villagers outside.

Some of the children rushed outside, and I gasped a bit and chased them down. I grabbed the three by their hoods and then held them close, knowing that it wasn't safe as I watched Aang being lead away onto the Fire Nation ship. Not long after they left, the villagers shakily started to go back to their lives, and I set the children free. They seemed scared enough to hang about the elderly at that moment, anyways.

I sought out Katara, and found her and her brother, Sokka, in Khana's room. It turns out they were just leaving, and to go save Aang at that. There was a pregnant silence as I glanced from person to person.

"I want to go with you," I stated.

Sokka and Katara were surprised, but before either of them could say anything, Khana broke in between us.

"She should go. I can feel that her destiny is with you, not here with me. Let her come," Khana said in a mystic tone.

Katara and Sokka looked at each other, and Sokka let out a loud sigh and left the room. Katara followed, waving for me to do the same. I smiled at Khana and bowed a little bit, then stood straight and tugged off the parka she had lent me.

"I want you to keep this. I don't really think it belongs with me. I'll find a jacket soon enough, and I'm sure we won't be sticking around the South Pole for too long," I said quietly.

Khana took the parka, searching my red eyes with her own water-blue ones.

"Go, child. Be safe."

"Goodbye. Thank you." I bowed one more time, then followed after Sokka and Katara.

I found the two upon the large Sky Bison, who I believed was named Appa. I climbed up into the saddle and sat, peering down at the ground. Sokka tried to figure out the word that Aang had used to try to make Appa fly, and when he said the words, "Yip, yip," Appa groaned and shot into the air.

I let out a tiny shriek and clung to the saddle, enthralled by the wind ruffling my golden hair. It felt... good. Good to be up here, in the sky. It felt like I could breathe easier, like I was energized.

I relished in the feeling, not even feeling the cold as the time passed quickly in our search for the Fire Nation ship. After a while, we saw it, and Sokka guided Appa toward it. I yelped in surprise as Aang flew by my head on his glider, landing on Appa's head gracefully. Sokka grumbled and took a seat in the saddle as Aang took the reigns and lead us all away from the Fire Nation ship, which had crashed humorously into a wall of ice.

I turned my attention to the other three once we were far enough away. After a brief conversation, Aang confessed that he was the Avatar. I was confused at first, not exactly remembering what that meant. But when they started to go into plans to head to the Northern Water Tribe, I realized just who Aang was. The master of all four elements. It was decided by Aang, however, that the first trip would be to the Southern Air Temple. I remembered solemnly that all the airbenders had perished long ago. I then realized that Aang did not know this. That's right... Aang must've had no clue...

Aang did not know that he was the last airbender.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hēi àn  
Into the Southern Air Temple**

* * *

I had to admit, I was nervous. Katara had told Aang at least twice that a lot of things had changed in the hundred years he'd been gone, but Aang insisted that, "Just because no one's seen an airbender for a hundred years, doesn't mean that they're extinct". As we neared the Southern Air Temple, I grew more and more anxious along with Katara.

When the young girl mentioned that if firebenders had reached other places, then they could have reached here too, Aang informed Katara with confidence that the only way to get to the Southern Air Temple was by riding on a flying bison.

Aang suddenly told Appa to "yip, yip", and led him up the side of a mountain. The speeds of the winds were crazy, and I could feel my hair getting tangled. I let out a short cry when Appa suddenly slowed down, but was amazed when I looked up. The temple was beautiful.

"There it is. The Southern Air Temple," Aang proclaimed, leading us to safe ground once again.

I wobbled off of Appa once I deemed it safe to, noting the small, sick feeling in my stomach. I ignored it and looked around with big eyes.

"It's amazing!" I breathed.

"Yeah, it is... There's so much more, come on! I'll take you all on a tour," Aang said, leading Sokka, Katara, and I up a winding path to higher ground.

"So, when are we gonna find something to eat?" I heard Sokka grumble.

"You're one of the first outsiders to ever visit an Air Temple, and all you can think about is food?" Katara exclaimed in disbelief.

"Hey! I'm just a simple guy, with simple needs," Sokka replied.

I rolled my eyes at his antics. The trip with him was going to be a strange one.

When we all reached the top, Aang pointed out a few things to us.

"This is where we would play Airball, and that's where the bison would sleep! And..." Aang trailed off and sighed.

"What is it?" Katara asked in concerned.

"Nothing... It's just that this temple used to be so full of life, and now it's just a bunch of weeds," Aang said sadly, which made me frown a little bit.

In an attempt to cheer Aang up, Sokka then spoke.

"So, hey, the Airball game. How do you play it?" he asked.

Aang brightened up immediately, then took Sokka and place him on one end of the field, while he went to the other.

"I'll show you!" Aang said excitedly, then picked up a ball and bent his air around it, making it spin while he began explaining the game to Sokka, who wobbled a bit on the platform nervously.

A few moments later, Aang threw the ball, bouncing it off the poles and knocking poor Sokka off of the field, which made me wince and laugh at the same time.

"Aang seven, Sokka zero!" Aang cheered.

"Cheering him up is putting me in a world of hurt," Sokka groaned as he got to all fours. I then heard him gasp a little, which made me turn to look at him. "Look at this!" Sokka said quietly, pointing to a firebender's army helmet that was half buried in the snow.

"Fire Nation," Katara whispered.

"We should show him," I added.

"Aang, come over here. There's something you need to see," Katara called.

Aang made his way over, and I studied Katara's face. At the last second, she bent the snow from a hill down onto Sokka and I, making us yelp in surprise and indignation.

"What is it?" I heard Aang ask.

"Oh, just this new waterbending move I came up with," Katara said hastily.

"Nice one, but enough practicing! There's a whole temple to see!" Aang replied, then began to head away from us.

I angrily pushed my way out of the snow, brushing it off my shoulders and shivering.

"Jerk," I muttered.

"You know, you can't protect him forever," Sokka snapped at Katara, who just cast her gaze downward and followed after Aang.

I sighed and helped Sokka remove the cold snow from his person, then followed after the two myself. I found Aang and Katara talking in front of a statue of a monk. After I caught up, Aang turned and began walking away.

"Where are you going, Aang?" Katara called.

"There's someone I'm ready to meet," Aang replied.

Katara, Sokka, and I looked at each other, then followed after Aang curiously. We walked down the ornate halls, still amazed by the scenery all around us. It seemed so much more foreign and amazing than anyone could ever imagine. Aang stopped in front of a huge door with an intricate design of pipes and carvings.

Although we all doubted that someone could survive in one room for a hundred years, Aang pointed out that he'd survived in the iceberg for just that long. It was a good point, as Katara said. Sokka, being the normal idiot he was, was certain that whoever was in there had an "assortment of delicious, cured meats", and rushed to go and open the door. I wasn't surprised when Aang said that the door could only be opened with airbending.

Aang took up an airbending stance, breathed deeply, then pushed both of his palms forward, releasing two simultaneous gusts of air, which flowed into the pipes. The door opened slowly, and we cautiously made our way inside. When all of us realized that the only thing inside the room was a bunch of statues that symbolized the cycle of the Avatar, we were disappointed to say the least. Especially Sokka, since he didn't get his meat.

We were studying the statues, especially the one of Avatar Roku, when Sokka heard a noise and freaked out. We all looked to the entrance, but all we could see was the shadow of what looked like a soldier of the Fire Nation. Sokka proclaimed just so, and we all hid behind some statues.

"He'll never know what hit him!" Sokka announced, turning to attack the firebender when it got close enough. We heard his groan of both shock and relief, and turned to see what it was.

"Hey, it's a lemur," I proclaimed, unsure of how I knew this. "It's adorable!"

"Lemur!" Aang called excitedly.

"Dinner," remarked Sokka.

"Don't listen to him, you're going to be my new pet!"

The two tried to pounce on the lemur simultaneously, scaring it away with a little shriek. I rolled my eyes as the two chased after it, then stood with Katara and continued to explore the room with her. It was amazing, really. No one had seen this for a generations. I felt like I wanted to... paint.

"Katara," I muttered to get the younger girl's attention.

"Yeah?" she replied absently.

"Do I look like the painting sort to you?"

"... Maybe. Why?"

"Well, I feel like I might have been."

"Well-"

Katara was cut off when we both noticed that the statue of Avatar Roku's eyes were glowing. We looked at each other.

"Aang," we both said, then rushed off to find him and Sokka worriedly.

Katara and I were shocked to find them in the courtyard down below with winds of incredible speeds swirling around the entire area.

"What happened?" Katara shouted to Sokka over the loud wind.

"Aang found out about the firebenders. They killed Monk Gyatso!" Sokka shouted back.

"It's his Avatar State! he must've triggered it! I'm going to try and calm him down!"

"Well, do it quick, before he blows us off the mountain!"

Katara made her way over to Aang, and due to the loud winds, I couldn't hear exactly what she was saying. Whatever is was must have been successful, because Aang began slowly descending from his place in the air. Once Sokka and I deemed it safe, we made our way over to the pair, and Sokka put his hand on Aang's shoulder.

"We aren't gonna let anything happen to you," Sokka said quietly, letting go as Aang collapsed into Katara's embrace.

Aang slowly came to the realization that he was indeed the last airbender. After he came to his senses, we visited the room of statues Aang had opened earlier. I stood near the entrance, wondering where the lemur had gotten off to.

As if my thoughts were his cue, the lemur appeared with an armful of fruit, then chittered over to Sokka and lay the food before him. Sokka immediately began stuffing his face, of course.

"Hey, it looks like you made a new friend, Sokka!" Aang cheered as the lemur dashed up his arm and curled around his shoulders.

"Can't talk; eating," Sokka replied, still hungrily chewing the fruit.

We all eventually made our way back to Appa and began packing up. When we were finished, Katara asked Aang the question I'd been dying to know for ten minutes.

"What are you going to name him?"

Just as Sokka was about to take a bite of a peach, the lemur took it and began nibbling on it himself.

"Momo!" Aang declared, which sent all of us into a fit of giggles.

_Yes... _I thought to myself. _This journey will be marvelous indeed!_


End file.
